I went backpacking in the Adirondack High Peaks district for 3 days with my friend Cliff
We drove up, and it probably takes 5 hours if you only stop shortly for gas and bathroom, and don't get lost. I discovered we'd accidentally got onto 90 going west, when we're supposed to stay on 87 up to 73. I was just checking our position on my iPhone. We were lucky we hadn't gone farther down 90. Cliff's GPS wove us back to 87, through Saratoga Springs.
Instead of arriving at midnight we were there at 1am. We found a flat spot off the parking lot. I woke up at 730, and we pottered around until the lodge opened up at 8, so we could rent a bear canister. When I used to go there, you were supposed to hang your food from a tree. But we never did that, and never saw a bear. But it's a rule, so we rented the canisters. They're about the size of a fair sized watermelon, or maybe one of those mini beer barrels. I packed mine full, and had some stuff outside so that I could eat it during the day. I had string cheese, dried fruit and dried nuts, wasabi peas. Cori cooked me some muffins, and I had some mini bagels and peanut butter.
It was pretty intense. We went up the second tallest mountain with full packs. We seemed to go up and up forever, and then there were really steep rock faces that really killed the quads. I was sweating like crazy, and trying to take on water. I was really out of breath too. It seemed to go on forever and then there was a sign ".9 to summit". At one point Cliff left me. He's in really good shape.
I freaked out at the tree line and my whole body was tingling. I had visions of Into Thin Air. I would have been happy to take out my backpack and sleep on the bumpy rocks. I sat there quite a long time. I told a guy going up to tell Cliff I couldn't go up any more. Cliff and a ranger volunteer came down after a while. The ranger said to eat something salty and sip water. I ate the string cheese I had, and some trail mix.
Reading the wikipedia article on dehydration, I think I didn't have enough salt, and that caused problems. I think a low salt diet is for me in normal life, but not when I'm sweating all day, it's not appropriate.
So I eventually felt better, and Cliff carried my pack to the top. It's amazing up there.
We hung out on the summit for a while, where it's windy and cold. Lots of college students. Some were playing cards. Another knew the volunteer ranger, they both went to Oneonta. On my shrine is a photo of the view from Algonquin, and it's a sacred place to me. There's a plane crashed on the side of the mountain, which I've looked at before. You could see Marcy in the distance, that's the tallest mountain in New York state.
So going down, I felt better, and going down is easier to a certain extent, and faster, but we just kept going down and down and down, and I went from very good, to good, to OK, to not so good, to drifting into the arena of the unwell. I ran out of water, and while we passed a few small streams, Cliff wanted a larger one, so I chose to wait a while, and we found a fast running stream. It's hard to pump water with only two hands, and exhaustion. But I drank my fill to keep me hydrated, and I ate some salty peanuts he gave me. I didn't like the salty peanuts. When I wasn't feeling well as we kept going and going, I kept asking Cliff to set up camp in a small flat spot I'd occasionally find. He said you have to be 75 feet from the water. I was starting to get angry, and weirdly singing Billy Joel's Piano Man in my head. I kept saying, "one more push," and we'd go for along time until I needed to rest. It's easier going down, but when you're exhausted, the sun is going down, you just want to stop. Seemed like we'd gone on forever.
At one point, Cliff just said he'd go ahead and find a campsite. I eventually got up, and he was coming back, he'd found a place. We set up camp and I think I went to sleep pretty quickly. We had a bug bivy, sleeping mat and sleeping bag. The sleeping bags are pretty good so it's hot for a little while, but it gets cold eventually and I fell asleep. I woke up, Cliff said there's an animal. Said it had knocked over my water bottle. Sure enough it was knocked over.
In the morning Cliff went for a hike to scout campsites. A ranger came along. He said you're supposed to camp 150 feet from water and 150 from the trail. We were 5 feet from the trail. He asked if I was in trouble coming down? Was I the one they radioed? I said yes. I guess we can get a ticket. He told me to pack up when Cliff gets back. He ran into Cliff, and Cliff reports he told him to take it easy on me. And it was probably a marmot that visited us in the night. And that he was 40. Cliff kept telling the rangers that they had the dream job.
So we hiked not very far to Lake Colden, and while I later found a lean to that was empty, we took a camp site. We set up camp and slept the day away. I was in a half wake fugue for a while until my caffeine pill wore off. I had a little trouble falling asleep when it got dark, but I slept most of the night. At one point a few drops fell and Cliff put the shelter over his head. If it rained more I would have put my side over my head, but it didn't rain much. I got up when the sun came up, but I tossed and turned for a while because Cliff wasn't awake. I finally got up and tried to get limber by going down to the lake, and going to the bathroom, getting our bear canisters which you have to store away from your camp.
I told Cliff I'd wait for him somewhere while he hiked around more, but he said it was OK to hike out. I still felt like I'd done something I shouldn't have, so I was OK with hiking out.
The way out is mostly flat, but there were ups and downs and some difficult areas, as we skirted a lake. I was tingling again with 2+ miles to go, and Cliff gave me 3 pieces of Beef Jerky from one of his 3lb bags he went through, and bought on Amazon. It was pretty good, but I was hoping to stay vegetarian. I just didn't like the salty peanuts, and all my food was without salt. I'd eaten my last string cheese.
We went through some beautiful spots, and then down and down, and I started to wonder if we were ever going to get there, but it was flat at least, though hot. I took off my shirt because my shirts got soaked. I was tired of wiping the sweat off my forehead and nose, and beard. I just soldiered on.
At one point I set down, and finished the last of my water. We'd passed the .9 to go, and Cliff was joking about how .9 would be a terrorizing number for me, with the .9 up Algonquin being really difficult and the last .9 getting out too. I stood up and felt woozy. So I ate some slightly salty trail mix. No more water, Cliff was out too. He said I could leave my pack and he'd come back and get it. I wanted to go all the way out on my own steam, but I was again in the arena of the unwell.
It was only like a half a mile or more, but without the pack I could walk straight out without resting, though I was pretty shattered when we hit the parking lot. Back at the car, I ate a can of garbonzo beans. Not sure why I left that for my return to the car snack, but luckily it had a healthy salt content. Cliff ran back to my pack, and then brought it back. We went and rinsed out our bear canisters, and returned them. I felt so unwell.
Then driving home I felt kind of sick, I was on the sunny side, and no AC. I was looking at the other cars, and everyone had the windows up. It was a hot day. Cliff said he doesn't like to use the AC when he's not in work clothes, but he graciously put it on when I began to tingle all over in my body again. The heat was really getting to me.
With the AC on I felt better. Cliff wanted a Mexican restaurant, and I did some Yelp research, and found one in Saratoga Springs. We had a lovely meal and two beers, and I felt so much better. I wolfed down salty chips. Usually I don't like them, but I think the theory that I needed salt was true. We got home about 9pm. Cori was glad to see me. It was great to take a shower and lay in a soft bed.
I need to lose some weight and get in shape. Cliff was in fantastic shape. Thank you for everything Cliff.
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